Suicide

Worldwide, one person dies every 40 seconds by suicide, a potentially preventable tragedy. A limiting step in our ability to intervene is the lack of objective, reliable predictors. We have previously provided proof of principle for the use of blood gene expression biomarkers to predict future hospitalizations due to suicidality, in male bipolar disorder participants. We now generalize the discovery, prioritization, validation, and testing of such markers across major psychiatric disorders (bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizoaffective disorder, and schizophrenia) in male participants, to understand commonalities and differences...

IMPORTANCE: Suicide is one of the top 10 leading causes of mortality among middle-aged women. Most work in the field emphasizes the psychiatric, psychological, or biological determinants of suicide. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the association between social integration and suicide. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We used data from the Nurses' Health Study, an ongoing nationwide prospective cohort study of nurses in the United States. Beginning in 1992, a population-based sample of 72 607 nurses 46 to 71 years of age were surveyed about their social relationships...

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IMPORTANCE: The rate of suicide attempts in the US Army increased sharply during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Research on this important health outcome has been hampered by the lack of integration among Army administrative data systems. OBJECTIVE: To identify risk factors for suicide attempts among active-duty members of the regular Army from January 1, 2004, through December 31, 2009. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This longitudinal, retrospective cohort study, as part of the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers (STARRS), used individual-level person-month records from Army and Department of Defense administrative data systems to examine sociodemographic, service-related, and mental health predictors of medically documented suicide attempts among active-duty regular Army soldiers from January 1, 2004, through December 31, 2009...

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OBJECTIVE: Comorbid anxiety in depression increases the risk of suicidal ideation and behavior, although data on death by suicide are scarce. We compared characteristics of depressed elderly patients with and without anxiety disorders who died by suicide. METHODS: From a 16-year clinical survey of all suicides in the UK (n = 25,128), we identified 1909 cases aged ≥60 years with a primary diagnosis of depression and no comorbidity other than anxiety disorders...

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BACKGROUND: Little is known about the effects of lithium intake through drinking water on suicide. This intake originates either from natural rock and soil elution and/or accumulation of lithium-based pharmaceuticals in ground water. AIMS: To examine the interplay between natural lithium in drinking water, prescribed lithium-based pharmaceuticals and suicide in Austria. METHOD: Spatial Bayesian regressions for males, females and pooled suicide mortality rates were estimated...

BACKGROUND: Media stories on suicide can increase suicidal ideation, but little is known about variations in media effects with regard to audience vulnerability and story contents. AIMS: We investigated the impact of three drama films with suicidal content that varied with regard to the final outcome (suicide completion, mastery of crisis and death by natural causes) and tested the moderating effect of baseline suicidality of the participants on the effects. METHOD: Within a laboratory setting, we randomly assigned 95 adults to three film groups...

IMPORTANCE: Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States, and its rate has risen by 16% in the past decade. Deliberate self-poisoning is the leading method of attempted suicide. Unlike more violent methods, which are almost universally fatal, survival following self-poisoning is common, providing an opportunity for secondary prevention. However, the long-term risk of suicide following a first episode of self-poisoning is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk of suicide and mortality from other causes following a first self-poisoning episode...

BACKGROUND: Suicide prevention in the clinical setting is focused on evaluating risk in the coming hours to days, yet little is known about which factors increase acute risk. PURPOSE: To determine the prevalence of factors that may serve as warnings of heightened acute risk. METHODS: Veterans attending an urgent care psychiatric clinic (n=473) completed a survey on suicidal ideation and other acute risk warning signs. RESULTS: More than half the sample (52%) reported suicidal ideation during the prior week...

This article provides a useful introduction to the art of role-playing in both the individual format and the group format using scripted group role-playing (SGRP). Role-playing can provide powerful learning opportunities, but to do so it must be done well. This article imparts guidance toward this goal. SGRP may greatly enhance the acquisition of critical complex interviewing skills, such as suicide assessment and uncovering domestic violence, in health care providers across all disciplines, an educational goal that has not been achievable to date...

OBJECTIVE: Suicide risk after discharge from psychiatric inpatient care is high, particularly in the first few weeks. The aim of the study was to identify risk factors and protective factors (that is, factors associated with a reduced risk of suicide), including variation in health care received, for suicide among patients in the two-week postdischarge period. METHODS: This was a national population-based retrospective case-control study of 100 psychiatric patients in England (2004-2006), age 18-65, who died by suicide within two weeks of hospital discharge...

BACKGROUND: Suicide is a major public health problem and globally is the second leading cause of death in young adults. Globally, there are 164,000 suicides per year in young people under 25 years. Depression is a strong risk factor for suicide. Evidence shows that 45% of those completing suicide, including young adults, contact their general practitioner rather than a mental health professional in the month before their death. Further evidence indicates that risk factors or early warning signs of suicide in young people go undetected and untreated by general practitioners...

OBJECTIVE: This study examined rates of contact with primary care and mental health care professionals by individuals before they died by suicide. METHOD: The authors reviewed 40 studies for which there was information available on rates of health care contact and examined age and gender differences among the subjects. RESULTS: Contact with primary care providers in the time leading up to suicide is common. While three of four suicide victims had contact with primary care providers within the year of suicide, approximately one-third of the suicide victims had contact with mental health services...

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IMPORTANCE: Suicide is a leading cause of preventable death, especially among individuals with psychotic disorders, and may also be common among nonclinical populations of adults with subthreshold psychotic experiences. Understanding this association has the potential to critically bolster suicide prevention efforts. OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between 12-month suicidality and 12-month psychotic experiences and to test the hypotheses that psychotic experiences are associated with increased prevalence of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts during the concurrent period and with greater severity of suicidal behavior...

OBJECTIVE: The authors evaluated the effectiveness of brief cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for the prevention of suicide attempts in military personnel. METHOD: In a randomized controlled trial, active-duty Army soldiers at Fort Carson, Colo., who either attempted suicide or experienced suicidal ideation with intent, were randomly assigned to treatment as usual (N=76) or treatment as usual plus brief CBT (N=76). Assessment of incidence of suicide attempts during the follow-up period was conducted with the Suicide Attempt Self-Injury Interview...